EX CATHEDRA LTD
Registered charity 1004086 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as EX CATHEDRA
Ex Cathedra is a leading UK choir and Early Music ensemble. It exists to enrich lives by means of historically-informed and contemporary performance excellence, research, education and training.
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Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts
The accounts state that the charity achieved a net surplus of £71,065 for the year, increasing total reserves to £180,045. The trustees report that free reserves of £135,788 are in line with their stated policy target of maintaining reserves equivalent to 8 weeks of expenditure. However, the trustees note that the organisation continues to face a challenging financial climate with an annual structural shortfall due to reduced council funding and increased competition for grants.
Automated summary of the FY2025 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.
What the accounts disclose
Reserves policy: 8 weeks expenditure (held: £136k)
“To meet the cashflow requirements, the trustees consider that the organisation should ideally maintain reserves at the equivalent level of 8 weeks expenditure; currently £135,000.” — page 9
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Accounts audited by Locke Williams Associates LLP. Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.
Corporate structure
Public fundraising profile: JustGiving — Ex Cathedra (matched by registered charity number).
Company officers (Companies House)
Current officers of the charity’s own company per the Companies House register, cross-checked against the Charity Commission trustee list by name. A director not on the trustee list is usually a timing or naming difference between the two registers — check both records before drawing conclusions.
- SMITH, Judith Anne, Professor — director, appointed 23/01/2023on trustee list
- KEENE, Paul John Thornton — director, appointed 23/01/2023on trustee list
- NAYAK, Alok Prashant — director, appointed 23/01/2023on trustee list
- PHILLIPS, Peter Sean — director, appointed 18/01/2021on trustee list
- KRISHNAMOORTHY, Laura Joy — director, appointed 01/01/2019on trustee list
- CLEMSON, John Francis — director, appointed 01/05/2018not on trustee list
- KERNTHALER, Sophie Margaret — director, appointed 01/05/2018on trustee list
- WHITEHOUSE, Paula Ann — director, appointed 19/03/2018on trustee list
Official officers record.
Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook · instagram
Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/03/2025)
Cost of raising funds
£42k
Reported reserves equal ~2.5 months of spending — below the median for charities its size (median 5.2 months; benchmarks).
Per its annual return, largest income source: Donations and legacies (59% of income) — components as reported reconcile to the return’s total income; not from the accounts narrative.
Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 4.6% of total income — below the median for charities its size (4.9%) (benchmarks).
Register events
- Received assets from another charity (14/06/2022) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.
- Peter Phillipschair
- Alok Nayak
- JOHN CLEMSON MBE
- Joy Krishnamoorthy
- Paul Keene
- Paula Whitehouse
- Prof Judith Anne Smith
- Sophie Kernthaler
Trustee list from the Charity Commission register (current, not historical).
Operates in: Throughout England
Income and spending
Common questions
Is EX CATHEDRA LTD financially healthy?
Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that the charity achieved a net surplus of £71,065 for the year, increasing total reserves to £180,045. The trustees report that free reserves of £135,788 are in line with their stated policy target of maintaining reserves equivalent to 8 weeks of expenditure. However, the trustees note that the organisation continues to face a challenging financial climate with an annual structural shortfall due to reduced council funding and increased competition for grants. Its FY2025 accounts were audited by Locke Williams Associates LLP.
Who funds EX CATHEDRA LTD?
Funders whose own accounts filings name EX CATHEDRA LTD as a grant recipient include CONTINUO FOUNDATION, THE CLIVE RICHARDS FOUNDATION, WILLIAM ADLINGTON CADBURY CHARITABLE TRUST, Genesis Foundation, GENESIS AMERICA (UK) LIMITED.
Known funders
Grants to this charity found in funders’ own accounts filings.
Government & lottery funding
Grants to this charity published as open data by government and lottery funders (360Giving).
Funders of similar charities
Funders whose accounts show grants to charities similar to this one (and no recorded grant to this charity) — a starting list for fundraisers.
Charities like this
Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with EXETER CATHEDRAL MUSIC FOUNDATION (CIO).
Side by side with its peers
Each row is that charity’s latest analysed filing; every value is quote-backed on its own page.